BY THE TIME we visited Ghent Belgium, I understood that Belgium is a wealthy country. I see it as more lowkey than countries like Spain, France or Switzerland or Germany. It is probably because of my own ignorance but I had a better sense of the history and personalities of other countries.
Despite having been schooled for thirteen years by Belgian nuns (St. Theresa's College in Cebu and in Manila), I never had a clear sense of what Belgium is or what Belgians (who were not nuns) were like.
I will be writing about my Belgian nuns in a separate blog or article, but for now, let me say that my visit to Antwerp, Ghent and Ypres made me understand that Belgium is a rich country. A quick research shows that Belgium ranks 18th in the list of the richest countries. There is Antwerp the diamond capital of the world; there is Brussels the capital of the European Union. Antwerp has the second largest port in Europe.
I am sharing pictures of Ghent, with its handsome and well-preserved medieval section. Ghent along with Bruges are popular tourist destinations for the preserved antiquity of the places.
I am also sharing pictures taken at Ypres and Tynecot - places that have strong historical meaning to our British companions. Ypres has a World War I memorial for the Allies casualties from German artillery and attacks. The Allies suffered over 250,000 casualties while the Germans lost around 200,000 soldiers. Tynecot is a military cemetery for British casualties. The War memorials were sad to see -- thousands of young men in 20s killed. Sadly, wars continue.
Read also:
River Cruise of the Netherlands and Belgium - Hoorn and Arnhem
River Cruise of the Netherlands and Belgium - Amsterdam Canals
Cecilia Brainard's Selected Short Stories Wins 40th National Book Awards in Short Fiction, English
Red Light District in Makati, Philippines
From Hanoi to Ho Chi Ming City
Kenya Safari
Ireland 1, 2
Visiting the American Southwest
Visiting Colonial Mexico
My Love Affair with France
Burma
Malaysia
Tags: #rivercruise #europeanrivercruise #Amsterdamcanal #Europeantravel #Europeanholiday
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